Gopeshwar: The Rudranath temple, one of the Panchkedar shrines located in Garhwal Himalayas, reopened on Thursday after closure during winters due to snowbound conditions.

The ceremonial opening of the gates of the temple took place this morning amid chanting of Vedic hymns as thousands of devotees brought a small idol of Lord Shiva here in a palanquin after a 21 km two-day trek from Gopinath temple in Chamoli district, where it is worshipped during the winter hiatus.

Located at an altitude of 10,000 ft above sea level, Rudranath is one of the Panchkedar shrines including Kedarnath, Madhyamaheshwar, Tungnath and Kalpeshwar. It is visited by thousands of Shiva devotees from all over the country every year.
The Himalayan shrine is closed every year during winter as it becomes inaccessible due to snow.